Dr. Perry is a social-developmental psychologist, whose research focus
includes studying how parents communicate with their children about race.
She also studies stereotypes about people who are biracial. Her research has
found that “biracial groups also have their own unique stereotypes, apart
from the stereotypes of their racial majority groups.”
It's really been a central theme in my life, how much cultural differences
affect the way multiracial children perceive themselves. I grew up in mostly
white neighborhoods, and the social pressure to distance myself from any
other ethnic characteristics affected who I am. Children have a conditioned
response to adapt to whatever seems like "safe" behavior in their upbringing,
to seek the conditioned stimulus of validation. But this instinct can self-
contradict. When I was around black friends I'd act how I do comfortably
around my family, but then suddenly my demeanor would change around a
white friend to avoid alienating them. It was "weird" to other people if I ever
was "out of character", people didn't get that I genuinely flip back and forth
between the two cultural modes, and have done so my whole life. It feels like
the only people who really understood were other interracial people, such as
my best friend Leonard, who is Filipino and Puerto Rican.
I am proud of her focus and effort to bring diversity to psychology and
exemplify why it is important through the subjects she chooses to focus on.
She brings the perspectives and socio-cultural aspects of biracial people and
how their experiences may be different. In the faculty spotlight article, she
spoke about how some white kids may not have day-to-day relations with
black kids. This made me think about my upbringing in Washington D.C.
(when it was still referred to as Chocolate City) and P.G. County Maryland,
and how my perspective on other races/cultures was formed. I had only one
white classmate in my entire journey through primary and secondary school,
and there was a time where the stereotype "white people are racist" was a
primary thought in my mind. However, I had parents who let me know this
wasn't the case, while also teaching me to be aware of others' thinking. I
love her work on healthcare and race, I believe the health disparity in the
United States is an extension of stereotypes for physicians and distrust due
to cases (Tuskegee Syphilis experiment)/ misinformation. I believe her work
and strategies could help close that gap.
Kenneth and Mamie Clark were not only among the most influential
psychologists, but important historical figures as well. Their research,
conducted in the 1940s, was part of the scientific argument for anti-racism in
the Civil Rights Movement. Their work was cited as justification for de-
segregation in schools, part of the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v.
Board of Education. Their most famous experiment involved giving young
children a choice of dolls to play with, and demonstrated that even Black
children showed an emotional preference for light-skinned dolls over dark-
skinned dolls. This demonstrates the pernicious effects of institutionalized
and internalized racism. While both Kenneth and Mamie Clark have long
since passed away, their legacy lives on. Kenneth is also credited as the first
Black president of the American Psychological Association.
includes studying how parents communicate with their children about race.
She also studies stereotypes about people who are biracial. Her research has
found that “biracial groups also have their own unique stereotypes, apart
from the stereotypes of their racial majority groups.”
It's really been a central theme in my life, how much cultural differences
affect the way multiracial children perceive themselves. I grew up in mostly
white neighborhoods, and the social pressure to distance myself from any
other ethnic characteristics affected who I am. Children have a conditioned
response to adapt to whatever seems like "safe" behavior in their upbringing,
to seek the conditioned stimulus of validation. But this instinct can self-
contradict. When I was around black friends I'd act how I do comfortably
around my family, but then suddenly my demeanor would change around a
white friend to avoid alienating them. It was "weird" to other people if I ever
was "out of character", people didn't get that I genuinely flip back and forth
between the two cultural modes, and have done so my whole life. It feels like
the only people who really understood were other interracial people, such as
my best friend Leonard, who is Filipino and Puerto Rican.
I am proud of her focus and effort to bring diversity to psychology and
exemplify why it is important through the subjects she chooses to focus on.
She brings the perspectives and socio-cultural aspects of biracial people and
how their experiences may be different. In the faculty spotlight article, she
spoke about how some white kids may not have day-to-day relations with
black kids. This made me think about my upbringing in Washington D.C.
(when it was still referred to as Chocolate City) and P.G. County Maryland,
and how my perspective on other races/cultures was formed. I had only one
white classmate in my entire journey through primary and secondary school,
and there was a time where the stereotype "white people are racist" was a
primary thought in my mind. However, I had parents who let me know this
wasn't the case, while also teaching me to be aware of others' thinking. I
love her work on healthcare and race, I believe the health disparity in the
United States is an extension of stereotypes for physicians and distrust due
to cases (Tuskegee Syphilis experiment)/ misinformation. I believe her work
and strategies could help close that gap.
Kenneth and Mamie Clark were not only among the most influential
psychologists, but important historical figures as well. Their research,
conducted in the 1940s, was part of the scientific argument for anti-racism in
the Civil Rights Movement. Their work was cited as justification for de-
segregation in schools, part of the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v.
Board of Education. Their most famous experiment involved giving young
children a choice of dolls to play with, and demonstrated that even Black
children showed an emotional preference for light-skinned dolls over dark-
skinned dolls. This demonstrates the pernicious effects of institutionalized
and internalized racism. While both Kenneth and Mamie Clark have long
since passed away, their legacy lives on. Kenneth is also credited as the first
Black president of the American Psychological Association.
